hi, i’m jasmine!
I write about AI and Silicon Valley culture: not only what technologists build, but why they do it. I spend my time interviewing AI researchers, eavesdropping at SF house parties, and synthesizing how frontier technology will impact society at large. After all, the Bay Area today is one of the most dynamic, most powerful, weirdest, and happeningest places in the world, and someone’s got to be here writing it down. I dub my approach an “anthropology of disruption.”
Here’s a starter pack for my work. I publish new essays here every week:
My most popular posts are on Chinese tech, AI populism, Claude Code, and SF’s gold rush vibes.
I’ve reported on vibe-coding for the WSJ, Chinese peptides for the NYT, defense-tech for the SF Standard, and spy mania for Business Insider.
I’ve guested on podcasts like Odd Lots, NPR, Sinica, and elsewhere.
You can find a full portfolio here.
Essays are free, but paid subscribers get how-to guides, event invites, and priority email replies, plus my deep gratitude (each piece takes ~20-60 hours to research and write). You can support my work for $10/month or $70/year.
If you have story tips, reading recommendations, or points of contention, shoot me an email! I can’t reply to everyone but do my best.
about me
Until 2025, I was a product manager at Substack, where I spent 4 years building our first community features, advanced publishing, and podcast/video tools. I’ve also worked on AI policy at Mozilla, Schmidt Futures, and the International Climate Development Institute in Taipei.
I am also cofounder and director of Reboot, a nonprofit publication and community reimagining techno-optimism for a better collective future. We publish the print magazine Kernel. I graduated from Stanford with a degree in Sociology, and currently live in San Francisco.
thank you
This project has been supported by Omidyar Network’s Reporters in Residence, Emergent Ventures, (m)otherboard, and paid subscribers.
I’m grateful to be able to work independently, without any external editorial oversight, on behalf of my readers and what I uncover as the truth. I do not consider myself part of any ‘camp’—AI critics, EA, pro-tech, whatever. I aim to talk to everyone then ultimately make up my mind by myself.
This means that individual paid subscribers are what keeps this going. If you’ve learned from, resonated with, or been challenged by my work, consider a paid subscription. (The second-best thing you can do is share this Substack with a friend.)
Now is the best time in the world to be a writer, and I’m so grateful to get to do this. Thank you!
— Jasmine Sun
